Twisted Intentions
by Bellethiel Merilwen
Summary: She snuck onto the ship to find help, to find the only other girl that knew...that experienced the same things as her. She needed River Tam.
1. Prologue

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing, with the exception of Pierce.

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Prologue

Nothing stirred. Nothing moved, which was rather unusual for the rickety shipped called Serenity. Her crew slept soundly, uninterrupted by the thumps and metallic clangs that seemed so normal to them. But for one passenger, the stillness didn't last. Something pulled at the edge of her unconscious mind, or perhaps it was a 'someone' that disrupted her rest. Her eyes snapped open and slowly, gracefully, she slipped away from the warmth of her bunk and into the safe shadows of the hall. River Tam's small body was perfect for melding into the darkness; she flattened herself again the wall and held her breath. A steady heartbeat haunted her, one that didn't belong, wasn't familiar. Step by step, she silently maneuvered her way through the unyielding black and listened keenly for that slight sign of life. Yet all she heard was the crew's rest, their recognizable heart rhythms, and Jayne's obnoxiously loud snores. She sensed the other one, the strange one, she knew it. She would never have left her room without the threat of danger pushing her. She pushed away from the way, but as soon as she did, a cold hand clasped tightly around her throat. The hand was thin and (she reasoned) female, judging by the feel of the slight bones through the icy skin. River managed to break free, swiftly ducking out of the female's grasp and delivering a hard kick to her stomach. The figure gasped audibly before it fell to the chilly metal floor. "Nothing can hide you. Your heart beats too loud," River mumbled, her voice uncharacteristically husky from lack of sleep. The figure looked up through crimson streamers of hair; her silver eyes seemed to glow in the darkness. On all fours, she looked helpless, afraid. River froze, her hand held high enough to indicate that she had meant to hit the girl once more. "Pierce," she whispered, before slowly lowering her hand and instead flying at the girl to embrace her in a tight hug. The girl burst into grateful tears, leaning against River's hold, as she whispered the word 'please' over and over again into the night.

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Short, yes I do know that, but I wanted to see if my prologue could hold any interest, since I know that Firefly/Serenity wasn't very popular at the time it should have been. shakes angry fist at whomever shares responsibility for Firefly being canceled 

I like violence, by the way, so expect a lot of it. :D  
I also have a very sick mind when the occasion calls for it, which explains the higher rating, as I am expecting some twisted ideas to give birth in my mind.


	2. To Stay Or Not To Stay

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing, with the exception of Pierce.

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Captain Malcolm Reynolds felt older than life that morning, not only did his old battle wounds ache, but his self proclaimed 'finely tuned' muscles as well. Rubbing the back of his neck with one hand and grimacing at the slight pain that burned beneath his fingertips, the Captain made his way to the kitchen to tame his growling stomach. Out of the corner of his eye, Mal spotted River's blurry form. "Mornin' little one," he mumbled, his voice still thick from sleep. She didn't respond, as usual, and so the Captain instead fumbled through the drawers to locate a knife. Reaching for an apple from the pile on the counter, he cut a slice and popped it in his mouth. When he turned to look at River, he saw another figure sitting cross-legged on the table. The apple caught in his throat, and the poor Captain found himself suddenly choking, he pounded his chest with one tight fist while struggling desperately for breath. River placed her arm around Pierce protectively, recalling Mal's past efforts to rid the ship of herself and Simon. "Dung ee-maio," he gasped, "Who the hell is that?" "Pierce came to visit," announced River simply, "she missed the smell of spaceship." She exchanged a smile with Pierce while the Captain attempted to make sense out of the situation.

"Mornin' Captain," called a chipper voice from just beyond the doorway. A moment later, Kaylee bounced into the room. Her eyes shown with a strange sense of youth as she glanced questioningly at the two girls, "We takin' on new recruits, Cap'n?" "No," came Mal's sharp reply, "but River here was just gonna explain how in the 'verse this little jien hw-" "Pierce," River interrupted, her mouth set in a firm line. "Does matter what her name is! Point is – I ain't takin' a liking to people sneaking abroad _my_ ship." He pointed an accusing finger at Pierce, "You're off when we stop at Beylix, got that?" "But Cap'n," Kaylee began. "No," said Mal, "Now there ain't no discussion on this, no arguments, the girl could be a danger to our operation." "Pierce," River interrupted again, irritation flooding her. How was it he could remember thousand of planets names and connections with outsiders, but couldn't keep a name in that empty cranium? "Capn's right," Jayne's deep voice cased them all to jump. Even River, with her strong sense of clairvoyance, found herself momentarily stunned, though for a different reason. "You don't even know her!" Kaylee cried, "How could you know she's a danger?" "_I_ might not know her," he stated hotly, "but_River_ does – and as far back as my mem'ry…remembers, that ain't never served well for us before." His physique was purely masculine; Pierce distantly noted the scent of sweat and dirt. "Perhaps we should consider this with a more rational approach." Inara's refined presence was undeniable; Kaylee and River's cause had just won. They knew, the Captain knew, even Jayne couldn't deny the fact that Inara would have Mal's consent within the hour. Yes, he'd fight it, but she had always been Malcom Reynold's weakness.

Pierce remained considerably calm, silent, through the entire ordeal. Though Serenity's crew held her fate in their hands, she showed ambivalence to that fact. River held onto her tightly, pleased to have her friend with her, to know that she could at least _offer_ protection for her. The argument between Inara and the Captain was short-lived, heated words and insults were swapped with the clear intention to wound, but it was a custom for the crew. And soon, Kaylee grabbed Pierce's hand and chattered incessantly, while leading her to the spare room. "Shiny, ain't it," she bubbled, "We haven't had a guest in ages!" Pierce smiled politely and nodded, while secretly asking herself how anyone could understand what the mechanic said when excitement fueled her. Their destination was reached, and when the door slid open, Pierce stepped inside, looking around slowly. Quiet hung in the air as the observation continued. "It's the best we've got," Kaylee said with a shrug, taking the girl's silence for displeasure. "It's perfect," Peirce whispered, her thin fingers traced over the bunk's quilt, _her_ quilt. Kaylee smiled brightly before she turned to leave. "Someone else stayed here," the girl's words caused Kaylee to halt, "Someone cherished, and imperative…I'm sorry, for your loss." Kaylee left, swallowing the obstruction that tugged at her throat. The room chosen for Pierce had once been Sheperd Book's.

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Dung ee-maio (Wait a minute)

Jien hwo (Cheap floozy)


	3. River's Mei Mei

**DISCLAIMER**: I own only Pierce.

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River could feel him nuzzle her neck, lips and teeth and tongue, all belonging to _him_. His scent filled her, surrounded her with the tinge of salty sweat and soil, and she felt nearly safe when his strong arm wrapped around her fragile waist. "Bao bay," he breathed in her ear, causing a sweet shiver to run down her spine, "That friend of yours is pretty cute." She shut her eyes tightly, though his rudeness was no real surprise. Jayne was an extremely predictable man, three things kept his diminutive mind reeling: violence, money, and pretty women. Intimate moments were rare between the two, and he frequently ruined them with his vulgar comments. His hands were feeling her body crudely, but for once she wouldn't allow it, and drifted away. She took a few breaths, attempting to steady her racing mind and fill it with rational thoughts, smothering the romanticized nonsense she experienced when with Jayne. "Sanity's fled," she whispered to him, "The ship falls to chaos, and your hands can go with it." He let out a heavy sigh, as if she requested too much of him. "Don't start," he ground out between clenched teeth. Couldn't she understand that he had needs? Men just didn't stop during sex; they needed something in return for their efforts first, and twice already this week he had been forced to stop himself because of her fits. "Impolite observations," she replied with an almost disturbingly innocent air, "Dogs sleep outside." Anger. She could feel it building in him, working itself into his bones. His teeth gritted, his fists clenched, and for a moment, he considered taking her anyway. He strongly suspected she wouldn't object, but found he couldn't follow through with his plot. Briefly, he damned his new-found conscience before sulking out of her room, reminding himself to keep his footsteps silent. The last thing he needed was the Captain figuring out there were relations between his crew.

_---_

Pierce could see her. The shadow on the wall imitated her every move and she couldn't help but laugh as River danced about the room, her soft blue dress billowed as she twirled round and round. Earlier, Pierce had tried to sing, but her pangs of laughter came too quickly to make the song seem intelligible. Now she clapped instead, creating a fine rhythm for her friend, though it was quite apparent that River didn't need a song to dance. A smiling Simon popped in the doorway, an open syringe in his hand. Rive froze, letting her eyes rest on Pierce's momentarily before offering her arm to her older brother systematically. It was routine now, time for medication, time to get better. His smile faded, and he held her wrist firmly while the needle touched her bare skin. A shirk came forth, causing Simon to jerk the needle back, and River to snap her head toward Pierce. Her head was in her hands, pulling at the scarlet curls viciously. "Aichmophobia," River said quietly, still in Simon's grasp, "Fear of needles. She thinks you hurt me intentionally. Mei mei, don't be scared." Her brother's brow creased, "Mei mei?" "Yes," River stated firmly, "She drank my blood, became part of me. My mei mei." With that, she snapped her hand out of Simon's hold, and went to comfort Pierce. It was unsettling to the young doctor; he couldn't decide whether or not to believe River. Yes, the majority of what she said seemed to be rambling of sorts, but there had more or less been _some_ truth hidden behind the cryptic words. She let Pierce's head rest in her lap, and stroked her hair carefully; singing the same sweet-tuned lullaby her mother once sang to her, while Simon left to discuss this new development with Kaylee.

---

"We have a new crewmember," the feminine voice startled Captain Reynolds out of his thoughts. He didn't bother to turn and face her. "Guess you must've forgot to tell me, Sir," Zoe said, her voice held an underlying sense of venom. She was, after all, the Lieutenant, and therefore should have been the first to know of a new _anything_ on board. "She ain't part of me and mine." "Not yet," argued Zoe, "But it's gettin' easier and easier to join." He whipped around, unused to her arguments. A dry comment here and there was normal, but never an outright statement against him. "I don't have the time to be monkeyin' around, trying to dump 'er off at Beylix," he replied evenly. She looked away for a moment, and then looked back. "You've said all kinds of things like that before, Sir." "Well this time I mean it," he said with irritation. An uneasy silence stretched before them. The Captain eased himself out of the Pilot's chair long enough to order River to the bridge. He turned back to Zoe and crossed his arms, "I ain't replacing Wash, Zoe, but it's getting' harder and harder to do our job bein' so short-handed. So you tell me what to do." She didn't respond, and he continued. "We've got a spare room, and she's free labor. Place to live, somethin' to eat and she's shiny. She's work labor, for now, until we figure out what do with 'er." Mal's eyes traveled over Zoe's shoulder, "Ah, there you are, little one. Fly us nice and steady, get ready to land in a couple hour's time." River nodded before taking the Pilot's seat, her nimble hands working the controls with ease, as though she had been doing it her whole life. "Now," Captain Reynolds said, "If you don't mind, I'm gonna have myself a chat with Patty-" "Pierce," River corrected from her seat. He could still sense tension off Zoe, but knew that unless there was some magical way to bring her husband back from the dead, that it was never going to go away.

---

"There's somethin' not right about the new girl," Kaylee contemplated out loud. Inara's hands swept through her hair, combing out the plentiful snarls. "Well," she said with a trace of amusement, "That's to be expected, after all, no _sane_ person sneaks onto Serenity." Kaylee frowned at the Companion's slur against the old ship. Her hand ran over the floor of Inara's shuttle in a comforting movement, as though telling it that Inara didn't mean her statement. "Don't get me wrong, it's shiny that the Cap'n let her stay, but-" "She's just a heapin' amount of trouble waitin' to happen?" Mal interrupted them. Inara tried her hardest to control her glare, though in the end she lost. "Once again, Mal, I must ask you to leave." He covered his mouth with one hand in mock-shock, and glanced from the door back at Inara. "Did I forget to knock _again_? Ain't that just horrid of me?" The Companion shut her eyes tightly for an instant, "You have no reason to be in here, Captain, unless I am overdue on the rent, and I _know_ that is not the case." He looked down at Kaylee, ignoring her, "Guessin' from your fascinating conversation with Inara here, you don't know where the girl is?" She shook her head, "Last time I seen her, she was with River." "And is there any particular reason you're here instead of in the engine room, where you're_needed_?" Kaylee couldn't tell if the Captain was really irritated, or if he wanted to catch Inara alone. "I just thought," she stumbled over her words, "since we was still on target, I'd take a break." "We're landin' soon, don't see how we're gonna do that without the mechanic in the engine room." She scrambled off the floor, murmuring curses in Chinese, before leaving the room. "Save them cute words for Simon, bao bay," he called after her. With a teasing smile sent towards the Ambassador, he left, leaving a seething Inara in his wake.

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Alright, three cheers for lame chapters! More of a filler, I know, but at least you all got a taste of River/Jayne in there (finally). Setting the stage, setting the stage.

Bao bay (sweetheart)  
Mei Mei (little sister)


End file.
